A/N: I know, I know, I should be working on my other stories, so heartlessly abandoned, isntead of starting a new one. They will receive their fair share of love, I promise! But this is an idea I've been trying to get out for a while and never turned out right.

Thanks to my beta Azzie (Inkfire) for looking this over! :)

Please review! :)

Daughter of the Dark Angel:

Chapter 1: Adopted?

A heavy blanket of heat covered the world. It shimmered off the road in waves, put everything to sleep. The park was completely silent, save for the soft voice of a young girl singing a wordless melody. Her eyes were closed, so she did not see the flowers dancing around her, but she sensed them, pictured them in her mind. The only piece she was missing was the reality.

But another saw what she did not. An elderly man with long white hair and beard, who had been searching in secret every summer for many years. And he felt that at long last, his work had paid off. The girl looked just like her mother, fair skin, red hair. She was small and slender, too. As he stepped forward and cleared his throat, her eyes opened just enough for him to see the color, a combination of her parents, a mix of green and brown. And in the next instant, dark brown as her eyes flew open in alarm.

She jumped up, backing away warily. "Who are you?" she demanded.

"My name is Albus Dumbledore." The girl paused. "And you?"

"Melody. Melody Smith. What do you want?"

"To ask you a few questions." The girl reached into her back pocket and pulled out her phone. "I must ask you not to leave – or call anyone – until I am done. I promise no harm will come to you." he moved aside a bit and sat on a bench. Melody kept her phone in her hand, but sat back down in the grass.

"How old are you?" She eyed him warily and remained silent. "Melody, I am no stalker. I am simply searching for a child...the daughter of two people I know. Her father has lost her mother, his family, everything." he explained softly. Melody still looked suspicious, but also a bit sympathetic.

"I'm fourteen."

"When is your birthday?"

"Today." Dumbledore smiled.

"Well, happy birthday then, Melody." She inclined her head slightly in acknowledgment.

"Where are your parents?"

"At home."

"Might I speak with them?" Melody considered, then opened her phone and started typing. A minute later, the thing buzzed, vibrating loudly in her hand, and she typed some more before closing it and slipping it back into her pocket.

"This way." she beckoned him along the path to where her bike stood chained to a post. She undid the lock and walked it ahead of him, leading him through the tangle of streets to her house.

It was simple and clean, perfectly average. Melody rang the doorbell and waited until the garage opened to put her bike away and let Dumbledore in. Her parents were waiting.

"Melody, why don't you go get some drinks?" her mother suggested calmly.

"Water, please." Dumbledore requested as the girl glanced at him. She nodded and disappeared.

"Quiet girl." he commented casually.

"It's up to her." the girl's father said suddenly, cutting straight to the point. "If she stays or goes." Dumbledore nodded.

"Of course. So you knew?"

"Her mother was my long-lost cousin."

"Ah. Would you care to explain or shall I?"

"We have to go pick our son up from swimming." the woman said, getting up. The two left, and Melody returned with the drinks. She must have known they were leaving, for she only brought two.

"Did you get everything you needed?" she asked.

"Not quite. The rest is for you to decide." Dumbledore eyed her carefully as he sipped the water. "Can you do this?" he asked, lifting his hand. Some water flew out of the glass and shaped itself into a smiley-face. Melody blinked. Then stared. And blinked some more. She shook her head, but didn't go into hysterics or denial, which was a good sign. "Try it."

The girl took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Instead of manipulating Dumbledore's water, she summoned flames and shaped them into a heart. "Open your eyes." he instructed softly. She did, and the heart wavered, but steadied a moment later. Her eyes widened. Dumbledore smiled.

"I am headmaster of a school for people like you...and your parents."

"They can do this too?"

"No, not the ones who raised you. I mean your biological parents. They both attended my school."

"So I'm adopted?"

"Yes. Your father says that your biological mother was his long-lost cousin." She nodded, but didn't seem surprised. A mystery for another day.

"Why didn't they come with you?" she asked suddenly.

"It is a long story."

"I have time." Dumbledore sighed.

"Your parents were childhood friends. It was very obvious that your father loved your mother, but they had a falling-out in their last years of school. I did not know of your birth...but your mother came back to the area and married another man. They had a son before they were both brutally murdered. It is my belief that Lily's family and your father had no idea you existed...until I found a letter from her in my files that had been written in invisible ink. It told me of your birth and that you had been born near here, and the name of your father. I knew who your biological father must be before she wrote it out."

"You told him?"

"Yes." Dumbledore admitted.

"Why didn't he come?"

"I have been searching for many years. He has given up hope...and the news was rather shocking. He doesn't believe I am telling the truth anymore..." Dumbledore let the thought trail off, watching her reaction carefully.

"Okay...so what now?"

"Well...you can stay here. Or you can come with me to attend my school and meet your father."

"Where is it?"

"In Scotland." Melody's eyes opened wide. "I hope you like to travel."

"I always wanted to see other countries..." she mumbled, suddenly shy. She bit her lip. "What about my friends...my life here?"

"You can tell them about everything but the magic. You may be able to visit...but during the school year you will only be able to write." She nodded.

"Can I have some time to think about it?"

"Of course." Dumbledore pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill from his robes. "This parchment is enchanted...whatever you write in it will show up on another piece which I will keep in my possession." he explained.

Melody nodded, taking both parchment and quill. "Thank you." Dumbledore nodded.

"I hope to hear from you soon. But do not rush your decision." he warned. She nodded again, staring blankly at the parchment. He disappeared with a loud pop, but she didn't look up. She was too busy seeing the possibilities of a new life unfold before her.